Bran
Bran, or Johnny, is the son of John, Red's kinsman, and Margery. He is the male protagonist of the second book of the Sevenwaters series, Son of the Shadows, and is the leader of the band of Painted Men. Biography Early life He first appears in Daughter of the Forest, as the newborn son of John and Margery. He is born feet-first, with Sorcha's aid, on Midwinter's Day. Only her skills allowed for him to be safely born. During the first book, John, his father, dies through being crushed by falling boulders while trying to protect Sorcha on Hugh of Harrowfield's orders. By the end of Daughter of the Forest, Margery raises him alone at Harrowfield. Soon after this, Red leaves Harrowfield to be with Sorcha. Three years later, Margery and her son are travelling to Elvington to visit her sister when their party is ambushed by raiders. Margery hides Johnny in a cellar to protect him, and is killed chasing the raiders away from his hiding place. He is found by an abusive man called Rory who is feared by many villagers. Rory decides to keep him, and does not inform anyone of his discovery of the boy. He keeps Johnny hidden from the other villagers, and often abuses him physically, verbally and psychologically. When he misbehaves, he is locked up for long periods of time in the dark, cramp chicken cellar. Rory harbors a deep hatred for Hugh of Harrowfield, and speaks ill of him to young Johnny, deeply engraining the fact that it is Hugh's fault that he is being subject to this abuse, which make him grow up to hate and blame him for his misfortunes. At the age of nine, Johnny kills Rory and flees Harrowfield. He also receives his first tatto of a honeybee, a tribute to his mother, at this age. Some years later, before he meets Liadan, he forms the band of the Painted Man of warriors, a group of fianna or mercenary for hire, who are at one point hired by a chieftan to take vengeance on Eamonn of the Marshes. In Son of the Shadows In the second book, Son of the Shadows, Bran shows up at Sevenwaters under the name Painted Man, the fierce leader of a skilled group of rogue warriors. At first, he is only known through the stories of attacks on lands and attacks on Eamonn of the Marshes. When Liadan is kidnapped by some of the rogue warriors while returning home after her sister's wedding, she encounters the Painted Man, and names him Bran (she refuses to call him Chief like the rest of the men do). They fall in love, despite only just having met each other. But when he discovers that Liadan is the daughter of Sorcha of Sevenwaters and Hugh of Harrowfield, Bran rejects her as he blames Sorcha and her "ability to bewitch men" (namely Hugh of Harrowfield), for the deaths of his parents and for his misfortunes in life after that. This is also the reason why he stays away from women. Their brief affair results in Liadan's pregnancy, and when returning home she is adamant that she must not marry another man nor leave the Forest. Her parents and the rest of the family agree, although a bit begrudgingly by some, and her child is born at Sevenwaters. It is a difficult birth, and only Sorcha's skill allows this child to be born alive. As this was a birth in everything alike to that of John's son, she tells her daughter that she should give him his father's name, and so the baby is named Johnny.· After Sorcha's death, Red returns to Harrowfield at her request, to find out what happened after he left and to try to find out Bran's story. However much he tries to, Bran cannot stay away from Liadan. He finds himself thinking of her and being concerned for her safety. When he hears that Liadan is staying in Sidhe Dubh, Bran goes there to tell her to leave as soon as she can. He finds her outside a hidden passage out of the fortress. Liadan tells him of Niamh's plight and asks for his help in freeing her from her abusive husband. Bran agrees, and asks for Liadan's trust as his price for helping. At dusk two days later, Bran and Gull meet Liadan and Niamh outside the secret passage, and they guide Niamh across the Marshes. However, Eamonn and Fionn arrive and see them, and Eamonn pursues them. Despite this, Bran and Gull manage to guide Niamh to safety across the Marshes. Ciaran meets them on the other side, and Bran leaves Niamh in his care. Bran is approached by Liadan's brother Sean with a mission:to sneak into the Briton's encampment and collect information about their plans and movements. Bran agrees to the challenge, which surprises Liadan. Bran and Sean agree that if Bran is caught, he will not tell of Sevenwaters' involvement in the mission. Bran is to feed the Britons false information mixed with truth, to gain their trust, and then collect information about their plans and strategy. Bran successfully completes the mission, but is captured by Eamonn of the Marshes, who has a vendetta against him for stealing Liadan from him, as well as killing his men. He tortures Bran for fun, both physically and psychologically, and at one point tells him lies about Liadan. When Gull is also captured he cuts off fingers from both his hands for entertainment. Eamonn shuts Bran in a bolthole in the fortress, realising that this would be the perfect torture for Bran. Bran slowly loses his mind in there, and is in a coma when Liadan rescues him and Gull. During their escape from Sidhe Dubh across the Marshes, Gull carries Bran across his shoulders, to repay Bran for saving him when he most needed it. After they are reunited with the rest of the group, Liadan tries to lead Bran out of the dark place he is in, and gets Bran's men to tells stories of how the Painted Man rescued them and brought them hope when they needed it. She then encourages Bran to think of good things and before the time his mother abandoned him. Ultimately, Liadan brings Bran out of his coma. Once he is awakened, Bran admits that he could feel Liadan with him, bringing him out of his coma. Bran accepts Red's offer of a home-- and a challenge-- in Harrowfield, but first goes north with his men to set up the training school at Inis Eala. He also personally tells Sean the information he retrieved from the Britons during the mission he was sent on. Child of the Prophecy Flame of Sevenwaters Physical appearance Personality Relationships Family Tree *'Father:' John *'Mother:' Margery *'Siblings: '''None *'Wife:' Liadan *'In-laws:' **'Mother-in-law:' Sorcha **'Father-in-law:' Red **'Brother-in-law:' Sean **'Sister-in-law:' Niamh (II) *'Children:' **'Johnny''' **'Fintan' **'Cormack' **'Coll' *'Grandchildren:' **None as yet. Appearances *Daughter of the Forest *Son of the Shadows *Child of the Prophecy *Flame of Sevenwaters Category:Characters Category:Britons Category:The Fianna